Sphere vs Wave Comparison: How Sphere Is a More Affordable Alternative
Blog Post #7
Wave built its reputation as the free accounting option. Search "free accounting software" and it's usually the first result. But free only covers part of what most small businesses actually need.
We built Sphere as a Wave alternative for freelancers and small businesses who want something that's actually free where it counts, and doesn't cost more than it should once you outgrow the basics. Here's how the two compare on pricing, fees, and features.
Pricing: What Wave's Free Plan Doesn't Include
Wave's accounting is free, but automatic bank feeds aren't. To connect your bank account and pull in transactions automatically, you need Wave's Pro plan at $19/month. Without it, you're entering every transaction by hand.
Sphere's Free plan includes automatic bank syncing, powered by Plaid, for up to 50 transactions a month plus 5 invoices — no credit card required, no forced upgrade just to connect a bank account.
Sphere Free: $0/month — automatic bank syncing, 50 transactions/mo, 5 invoices/mo
Wave Free: $0/month — no automatic bank syncing, manual entry only
Wave Pro (adds bank syncing): $19/month
Sphere Basic: $25/month — unlimited transactions, invoices, and users
Once you outgrow the free tier, Sphere costs $6 more per month than Wave's paid plan and includes unlimited users, unlimited invoices, and online payment processing.
Payment Processing Fees
Both platforms process card and ACH payments, but the rates aren't the same.
Credit card payments:
• Sphere: 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction
• Wave: 2.9% + $0.60 per transaction (3.4% + $0.60 for American Express)
ACH / bank transfer payments:
• Sphere: 0.8%, capped at $20 per transaction
• Wave: 1%, no cap
On a $5,000 invoice paid by ACH, Wave charges $50. Sphere charges $20. On a $10,000 invoice, Wave charges $100 and Sphere still charges $20 — the cap is what does the work.
Sphere's payment processing runs on Stripe, so every card and ACH transaction is backed by the same infrastructure banks and large enterprises use, not a smaller proprietary processor.
Where Wave Still Holds Up
Wave is a reasonable choice if you're not taking online payments and barely touch your bank feed — a handful of transactions a month, entered by hand, no invoicing to speak of. That's a narrow use case, but it exists.
Where Sphere Pulls Ahead
Unlimited users, even on the paid plan. Sphere's $25/month Basic plan includes invoicing, payments, and reporting for your whole team, without a separate $19/month charge just to sync your bank.
An AI assistant that answers questions in plain English. Ask "how much did I spend on software last quarter" and get an answer without exporting a report.
Free CPA access. Sphere uses standard double-entry accounting, so your accountant can log in and pull a P&L, balance sheet, or cash flow statement without an extra seat.
Which One Should You Use
If you process any payments online — invoices, deposits, recurring billing — the fee difference alone offsets Sphere's $25/month plan within a few transactions. If you're only tracking a handful of manual entries and never touch bank syncing or online payments, Wave's free plan does the job.
Questions about switching from Wave? Book a demo and we'll walk through your specific setup.